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Summer Reading List: “City of Lost Souls”

I know it’s been a while, but we’ve finally made it to the last published book in the Mortal Instruments series. We can finally find out what happened after the cliffhanger we were left with at the end of “City of Fallen Angels.”

The demon Lilith has been destroyed and Jace freed from captivity. But when the Shadowhunters arrive, they find only blood and broken glass. Not only is the boy Clary loves missing, so is the boy she hates: Her brother Sebastian, who is determined to bring the Shadowhunters to their knees.
The Clave’s magic cannot locate either boy, but Jace can’t stay away from Clary. When they meet again Clary discovers the horror Lilith’s magic has wrought — Jace and Sebastian are now bound to each other, and Jace has become a servant of evil. The Clave is determined to destroy Sebastian, but there is no way to harm one boy without destroying the other.

Only a few people believe that Jace can still be saved. Together, Alec, Magnus, Simon and Isabelle bargain with the sinister Seelie Queen, contemplate deals with demons, and turn at last to the mercilees, weapon-making Iron Sisters, who might be able to forge a weapon that can sever the bound between Sebastian and Jace. If the Iron Sisters can help, their only hope is to challenge Heaven and Hell — a risk that could claim their lives.

Amd they must do it without Clary. For Clary is playing a dangerous game utterly alone. The price of losing is not just her own life, but Jace’s soul. She’s willing to do anything for Jace, but can she still trust him? Or is he truly lost? What price is too high to pay, even for love?

Love. Blood. Betrayal. Revenge. Darkness threathens to claim the Shadowhunters in the harrowing fifth book of the Mortal Instruments series.

I never really thought there would be happily-ever-after for Clary and Jace (well, not just yet anyway; there is still one more book in the series),but I didn’t think Jace would be taken from Clary so soon. First, Clary lost him in death, and now she’s lost him after he’s been brought back. Heck, what’s worse: Losing someone in death, or losing someone in life?

The one thing about the Mortal Instruements that I keep forgetting is the fact that Clary, Jace, Alec, and Isabelle are all teenagers. I keep thinking that they’re adults. Well, Alec is 18, so he’s technically an adult, but I still think of him as a teenager (18 is still considered a teenager – – eighTEEN). It’s just they they have so much more responsibilty than most teenagers, and they have to more to worry about as well. In addition to having to worry about regular teenage problems, they have to worry about Downworlder, Demons and other Shadowhunters.

At the same time, if the characters were adults, I don’t think the Mortal Instruments would be as well-understood as it is now. I’m not saying it wouldn’t be understood if Clary, Jace and the rest of them were adults, but typically teenagers (at least in today’s world) seem to have the most dramatic lives. Teenagers tend to have the most problems. And they’re also the ones who have to come to terms with who they are, whether they like it or not.

For instance, Alec has to come to terms with his sexuality. Isabelle has to come to love and trust other people in her life, especially the men in her life. And Clary has to accept her not-so-normal life. Although adults could go through some of these same transformations, it makes more sense for the characters to be teenagers on the verge of adulthood.

Well, anyway, I hope you’ve enjoyed the Mortal Instruments as much as I have, and I hope you’ll enjoy reading “The City of Lost Souls” as much as I did when I read it.

Happy reading!

MOVIE UPDATE: Kevin Zegers has been cast to portray Alec Lightwood, and Lena Headey has been cast to portray Jocelyn Fray. Jamie Bower Campbell and Lily Collins are still set to portray Jace Wayland and Clary Frary, respectively. Robert Sheehan will portray Simon Lewis. And Aidan Turner is set to portray Luke Garroway. For more casting news, you can check imdb.com, and then search for “The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.”

“The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones” is set to be released in August 2013. I can’t wait to see it in the theaters. It should be as good as “Twilight,” only better. And if the first movie is successful, there will be more movies than “Twilight” as well.